[2] The Patía river flows westward from the Central massif of Colombia, cuts through the Western Cordillera and drains into the Pacific Ocean.

[1] The valley has been isolated from similar dry forests areas for long enough for unique flora and fauna to evolve.

Common plants in the dry valley now include Crescentia cujete, Guazuma ulmifolia, Cassia fistula, Bursera graveolens, Spondias mombin, Bauhinia picta, Ceiba pentandra and Gliricidia sepium.

Remote parts of the valley are still home to collared peccary (Pecari tajacu), red brocket (Mazama americana), Central American agouti (Dasyprocta punctata), ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) and cougar (Puma concolor).

A population of Andean condor (Vultur gryphus) once nested on the steep walls of the Juanambú and Guaitara rivers, but that species is no longer found in the region.

[3] Most of the valley has been drastically modified by human activity, but there are still pockets of original vegetation and there are some efforts at conservation on privately owned land.

Threats come from excessive hunting and collection of firewood, urban sprawl, agriculture, livestock and road construction.